By SHARON MOORE

Staff Writer

The Sigma Nu Fraternity raised $3,050 for the St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital Dream Day Foundation on Saturday at their third annual crawfish boil.

"We did well this year," Will Erwin, commander of the fraternity and a business administration major, said. "We did a lot better than last year, and that's because of the corporate sponsors."

The fund-raiser was held in the parking lot of Backus True Value Hardware, located at 103 N. Service Road E., from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Allan Martin, a senior marketing major and last year's Sigma Nu commander, said the fund-raiser went very well.

"A lot of people just walked up," Martin said. "They helped us pull in more money than we hoped. We're more efficient each year."

Erwin said they chose St. Jude's for their fund-raiser this year because an unsettling amount of St. Jude's patients are from Louisiana.

"It really benefits people in the area because a lot of patients come from here," Erwin said.

The St. Jude's Dream Day efforts culminate May 1 in Baton Rouge. Erwin said corporate sponsors take the kids fishing and horseback riding in addition to other outdoor games.

Erwin said about 1,000 people attend each year.

"There is an awards ceremony, and it's really uplifting for the kids," Erwin said. "Then [Sigma Nu] will present them with a check."

Matt Rookard, a junior finance major, said he did "odds and ends" of things at the crawfish boil.

"A lot of college people ate there, and we had drinks and stuff," Rookard said.

The Sigma Nus sold 350 plates, translating into 1,100 pounds of crawfish.

"We want to thank the businesses because they made it all a lot bigger," Rookard said.

Last year the group raised about $500 for the Ruston Center for the Blind.